Child Cough

Q. My child 8 months old had low grade fever with occasional cough since last night. I gave him some baby tylenol and he slept just fine. When he woke up in the morning, he had high grade fever and a persistent dry cough that would worsen when he would lie down. It didn’t let him sleep. Can I give anti allergic or other over the counter cough medication. His fever was 100 degrees Fahrenheit checked in the axilla.

Hello and welcome to AskHealthMD

I appreciate your concern

A dry cough that is more intense and frequent when your child is lying down is most likely related to a post-nasal drip. It can be associated with an upper respiratory infection such as sinusitis or pharyngitis.

A runny or stuffy nose can give a clue regarding a possible focus of infection.

The child’s behavior would be altered and is easily perceived by the mom to not be his usual self. He can be irritable and crying a lot or may refuse his usual feed. This is a subjective but crucial enquiry that must be made.

If the answer to the irritability and altered behavior or a general sense of fatigued child with poor sleep is YES, then he must be examined by a pediatrician.

If the answer to the above is NO ; meaning the child is behaving normally with these symptoms and his feeding and sleeping patterns are minimally affected then he can be observed for a further 24 hours.

Any cough in a child less than 3 months old warrants a checkup. Other red flags associated with cough that necessitate specialist consultation are

Difficulty in breathing or is unable to catch in breath with cough in spasms